EMEA UC market predicted to double by 2014

Unified communications (UC) installations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) are likely to total more than $16 billion (£10 billion) in 2014, according to an industry forecast from IDC.The analyst expects to see the market double in size from its 2010 value of around $8 billion over the four-year period, with particular growth towards the end of the period when economies around the region begin to demonstrate stable growth.

Isabel Montero, senior research analyst for UC and collaboration at IDC EMEA, says: "IDC predicts moderate year-over-year growth in the next five years," adding that some caution is expected to arise from the aftermath of the credit crunch.

However, in small and medium-sized businesses, UC is expected to become dominant, not only through in-house installations, but also through cloud delivery and third-party hosted models.

Ms Montero develops viewpoints for IDC on how true business UC and collaboration environments are evolving, including how the technology required to support them is developing over time.

source: zycko